Giles Insurance Brokers swing to profit ahead of US takeover

GILES Insurance Brokers, which was bought last year by Arthur J Gallagher, grew its turnover and swung to profit in the year leading up to its takeover, while its former parent took a £72.5m charge on the sale, recent accounts show.

The company’s name change to Arthur J Gallagher Insurance Brokers Limited was made official at Companies House last week, after the sale was finalised in November.

Turnover rose from £59.3m to £69.8m in the year to August 2013. Giles posted profits of £1.36m, from a £2.2m loss in 2012, when it booked costs on failed acquisitions.

The number of staff at the firm fell by a net 20 to 854 in the period.

Meanwhile, at Expectrum, its former parent company, revenues rose 2.1 per cent to £90.5m, but the group took a £72.5m provision for tax reasons on the sale of its operations to NYSE-listed Gallagher. The charge took operational losses before tax to £112.3m, compared to £39.5m in the prior year.

Expectrum sold Giles, along with other insurance operations, in a cash deal worth a reported £233m.

Last month, Gallagher posted a 28 per cent rise in quarterly earnings to $120.5m, boosted by several recent acquisitions.